Grumpy Old Sprites
by Brenren
Summary: When Ray Tracer and Matrix decide to turn their personal vendettas into a war, how long can it last and how far will it go? Chpt.5 added.
1. Prologue

_A/N __I would like to thank Claire Hunter for inadvertently giving me the idea for this fic during a conversation on the Reboot Mayhem Forums.  I would also like to thank Zilla, Ebehr and the crew at the Forums for encouraging me to write.  I couldn't do this without you guys.  You're the best.  __J___

**_Disclaimer-_**_ I do not own Reboot or it's characters.  Everyone knows this.  It's not a big mystery.  Mainframe Entertainment owns it.  I simply live vicariously by making the characters do my bidding.  Please don't sue me, I'm not worth it.  But while you're here, enjoy the read.  __J_

Grumpy Old Sprites By: Brenren 

**Prologue:**

Matrix grinned widely as he examined the baud outside of the diner.  Normally the surfer didn't leave it outside when he went in to dine, but he had become used to the city of Mainframe and had begun to trust its citizens more and more.  It made Matrix proud of the city that he called home, and his grin grew larger as the thought struck him that it made it easier for him to pull this off.  The sound of soft approaching footsteps caused him to conceal his grin, knowing who it was that was coming up behind him.   He felt a soft touch on his bicep as he still gazed at the baud.

"Hey Sparky," the soft voice was like music to him, "what's up?"

Matrix turned to look at the beautiful game sprite now standing next to him.  "Not much," he said in reply to her question, "you about ready to eat?"

AndrAIa saw a small glimmer in his eye and almost instantaneously knew that he was up to something.  She couldn't be sure of what it was, but the way he was intently looking at the baud gave her a hint.  "What are you up to, Sparky?  I know that look in your eye.  What are you planning to do?"

Matrix immediately put on a look of hurt and indignation.  "Now why would you think that I was up to something?  I was simply standing here and admiring the mysterious inner workings of this fine machine."  His grin had returned as he pointed to the baud and that little glimmer in his eye was still there.  "Does it look to you like I've done anything to it?"

AndrAIa looked at the baud propped up against outer wall of the diner and examined it quickly.  Everything looked normal to her but she still had the sneaking suspicion that he was up to something.  He hadn't stopped grinning since she made the accusing remark.  But since she could find no fault, there was really nothing she could do but hope that he hadn't pulled another of his pranks.  "Alright," she said in an exasperated tone, "you win.  Let's just go have a nice peaceful lunch for once."  She turned toward the diner door and let the grinning sprite follow her.  

The diner was filled with its usual crowd and Cecil was doing his best to keep up with the orders as he glided around the establishment.  They found a couple of empty stools at the bar and glanced around at the gathered patrons.  Matrix caught sight of Ray and Mouse in a booth near the back, and gathered around them was a small group of binomes.  The volume of the voices gave him an idea of what was going on back there as the binomes broke out into laughter.  The surfer was the center of attention and his grin was wide as he held up his hands to quiet the small crowd enough to continue another of his stories of the web.  

Matrix kept his eye on the surfer for as long as he regaled the small group with his tales.  After several more nanos of being the center of attention, the surfer finally got up from his seat at the booth and came toward him.  Matrix suppressed his grin as he watched him approach.  He took notice of the look of easy confidence on the face of the surfer, or was it cockiness, he couldn't really decide for sure.  

"Hello there, lovely lady," he greeted the game sprite as Matrix put on an almost menacing look toward him.

"Hello Ray," she replied with a smile, "leaving so soon?"

"Afraid so, love," he said with a regretful smile, "Mouse hasn't repaired all of the long range sensors yet so Dot wanted me to scout the perimeters of the system in the net until they're all fixed.  I take it you'll be helping Mouse?"

"As soon as we're finished here with lunch I'll be meeting her back at the Principal Office."  AndrAIa glanced over in Mouse's direction and noticed her coming toward them also.  " If you'll excuse me for a nano," she said to Ray, "I have a little shop to talk with Mouse before we start.  Talk to you later, Ray."  She stood up and crossed the crowded room and met Mouse in the middle, leaving Ray at the counter with Matrix.  Ray had a feeling she did it on purpose.  She and Mouse had both been prodding him and Matrix alike to end the petty little personal war that they had waged against each other.  Both women were tiring of the juvenile and sometimes dangerous pranks that they pulled.  

"So, tall, dark and brooding," Ray began, "deleted anyone yet today?" 

Matrix turned to the surfer and gave a rare smile.  "Not yet!"

Ray noticed the grin and was a little unnerved, but he certainly wasn't going to let Matrix know that he was still slightly intimidated.  He still grinned as he replied, "Well, don't give up hope, the second's not over yet."  He clapped him on the shoulder and with a wave and a blown kiss to Mouse, he turned and exited the diner, leaving Matrix to grin as he watched the surfer intently.  

Outside the diner, Ray hopped on the baud and took off toward the net ports.  The first thing that he noticed was that the baud seemed a bit sluggish in its handling and he looked down to see what could be making it act so.  By the time his goggles had picked up the problem, it was too late.  The baud had stopped dead in its tracks and Ray was being thrown through the air and into the parking lot.  

The sound of people gasping at the window and Matrix's sudden outburst of laughter caught Mouse and AndrAIa's attention.  They glanced out the window in time to see Ray hitting the pavement.  "Oh my User, Ray!" Mouse called out as she rushed to the door and out to the parking lot.  

AndrAIa took a brief nano to glare at the still laughing Matrix.  "I knew you were up to something." She muttered before following Mouse out the door.  

***

Mouse ran directly to Ray as he was picking himself up off the ground.  "User, Ray, are you alright sugar?" she said as she knelt next to him and helped him into a sitting position.  

Ray grunted slightly in response, "I think so," he said as he shook his head a bit to clear the fog.  The jolt on the baud had been more painful than hitting the pavement itself and it was taking a bit to gather his wits about him.  "No broken bones or anything, just a bit scuffed is all."  He turned to look for the baud and found it approximately forty feet behind him with AndrAIa kneeling behind it.  "Ruddy wanker really outdid himself on this one," he said as Mouse helped him to his feet, "got to hand it to him, I didn't catch it until it was too late."

"Are you two ever gonna compile up and stop this nonsense?" Mouse chided as they walked back to the baud.  "Someone is gonna end up hurt because of all this."

"Hey," Ray retorted, "he started it when he put the 'Gay Pride Marshall' sign on the bottom of the baud."  He shuddered slightly at the memory.  "I haven't been able to get Al's waiter to stop looking at me like that since."

"What do you make of this Mouse?" AndrAIa said once they reached the baud.  Her attention was immediately drawn to the chain that was fastened to the baud, but then she caught sight of the shattered program lying all around the chain.  She picked up a piece and examined it a bit.

"Hidden file command," she said with authority, "it must have broken from the pressure on the chain."  

"No wonder I didn't see it," AndrAIa stated as she unhooked the chain from the bottom of the baud, "I just knew he was up to something."  She then gathered the rest of the chain back to the lamppost that the other end was attached to and freed it.  

"That's it sugar," Mouse looked directly at Ray as she spoke, "this has to end.  One of you is gonna get hurt, or worse, someone else will get hurt from all these spammed pranks you two keep pulling."

"It will end, love," Ray said reassuringly as he took her hands in his, "as soon as I get the ruddy wanker back for this one."

"Oh no you don't, Ray Tracer."  Mouse stated firmly, pulling her hands from his and crossing her arms in front of her.  "We're going back into that diner and you two are gonna settle this thing once and for all."  

"Fine," he replied, "I'll go back in the diner, but only because I need an energy shake to get my head straight.  I'm not going to let him get one up on me."

"This is not a war, Ray!" Mouse exclaimed in exasperation.  "Why do you have to be so damned stubborn?  Just be the bigger man and let it go."

"You see, that's where you're wrong love," he stated with a slight grin on his face, "this _is_ war."  With that, he picked up his baud and headed back to the diner.  "You coming?" he asked as he opened the door.

"Yeah, yeah," she said even more exasperated than before, "I'm coming."

***

Dot had apparently heard the raucous from her office because she stood behind the counter glaring at her brother, who still sat grinning on his stool.  AndrAIa, who had come back in a few nanos earlier, was also behind the counter glaring.  Ray sauntered up to the counter and took a seat next to the large former renegade while Mouse took the seat on the other side of him.  

"So Ray," the large green sprite began, "how was your trip?"

"Not quite as nice as the one you're going to be taking, you son of a null."  He replied in an almost amiable tone.

"Oh, c'mon Ray," Matrix said still grinning, "I was just getting you back for putting that potato in the exhaust on my bike.  You gotta admit, that hidden file command was a work of genius."

"When are you two going to stop this ridiculous feuding?" Dot finally spoke up.  "I keep hearing you two talk about how you're just getting even for one prank or another.  Don't you think that you two are way past even and should just drop this?"

"No" the two sprites said in unison.

"I honestly do not get you two," AndrAIa spoke this time, "neither one of you is willing to give an inch to end this?"

"No" they said again.

"I thought I'd met some stubborn ASCIIs before this," Mouse continued with the berating, "but you two are the most stubborn, pigheaded sprites that I've ever seen.  Just how long do you two plan to keep this little feud of yours going?"

As if in answer to Mouse's question, the two men turned to each other and glared.  Without a word, the message was sent.  This was all out war.  


	2. With Age Comes Wisdom Sometimes

**Chapter One:**

**With age comes wisdom… sometimes.**

The festival would be in full swing in just a matter of seconds.  As he helped with the decorating of Floating Point Park, Bob could hardly believe that it had been thirty-five hours since the system restart.  The system had undergone so many changes and so had its citizens in that time.  There were now many more sprites in the system since many had immigrated from other systems after viral invasion or wars in their home systems.  Mainframe had become a safe haven for the oppressed of the net, and the hourly celebration of its restart had become not only a valued tradition, but also a symbol of hope for people all over the net.  

It wasn't actually necessary for the Command.Com or the newly appointed Prime Guardian to help with all of the preparations for the festival.  Mainframe boasted a wonderful Chamber of Commerce that handled all of the planning and were quite capable of handling things on their own, but Bob and Dot felt a responsibility to the city and to its citizens to make sure that everything was perfect.  They took great pride in Mainframe's unique celebration and took satisfaction in the preparations that they made themselves.  It was an ongoing tradition for them.  

Bob glanced over to Dot who was speaking with a zero binome that he recognized as the head of the Mainframe Historical Society.  Apparently there were some problems with the reenactment of the restart and she had come to Dot for a quick brainstorming session in hopes of solving the problem.  He stood there, amazed at the dedication she showed and her decisiveness in handling the situation.  He couldn't really hear what she was saying to the matronly binome, but he could tell that her processor was hard at work and that she was currently solving another crisis.  

After all these hours, she was still the most amazing sprite he had ever seen.  Even now, she didn't look all that much different than when he had first met her.  She had a few strands of silver in her hair and her face sported a few laugh lines, but the hours had been very good to her.  She still maintained her slender shape, although she now exercised more and watched more carefully what she ate.  He had to admit to himself that she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

Bob hadn't realized that he had been staring until a voice behind him startled him to attention.  "You know mate," the voice began, "she's not going to disappear if you lose sight of her."  The surfer stood there with his usual cocky grin that he never seemed to grow out of.   

"Hey Ray," the Prime Guardian began, "you got to quit sneaking up on me like that."  

"Sorry mate," he replied, "didn't mean to scare you.  Just came to see if Mouse was around anywhere.  Have you seen her?"

"Yeah, she was helping to set up some of the booths last time I saw her."  Bob began.  "She seemed pretty happy that Nick was going to be home in time for the festival."  Bob couldn't help but notice the look of pride that crossed the web surfer's face at the mention of his son.  It seemed like only a few hours ago that Nick Tracer was born, and now here he was graduating from the top technical school in the net.  

"She's in her glory," Ray replied with an obvious note of pride in his voice, "she never really did like him being so far away for so long.  But he's in the top of his class so that at least gives her some bragging rights."  

"And believe me, she's been using them.  I don't think she's stopped talking about him all morning." Bob grinned as he replied.  "When is he supposed to get back?"

"Tomorrow, mid-second, just before the whole party kicks off."  Ray answered with a broad smile.  "Got to tell you, I'm really looking forward to seeing him again."

"Can't blame you there," Bob sighed slightly, "they grow up too fast.  Can you believe that Robby is going to be thirty hours old already?"  He shook his head slightly as he looked toward the ground.  "Seems like only a few cycles ago that I was changing his diapers, and now he's married and got a baby of his own on the way."

"Don't sweat it, Gramps." The surfer said as he jovially clapped Bob on the shoulder. "We're all going to be there shortly."

"Where's that?" a familiar deep voice came from behind them.  The Prime Guardian and the surfer both glanced behind them to see Matrix.  Like his sister, the hours had been quite gracious with the large green sprite, showing only a few streaks of silver throughout his hair and beard; unlike Bob and Ray who had both gone almost completely gray. His stature was a little stouter than it once was, but he was still quite an imposing figure.

"Grandpa-ville." Bob replied with a short chuckle.

"I'm already there, remember?" The tall green sprite quipped with a grin, causing the other two men to laugh slightly.  

"How could we forget?" Bob answered with grin.  "AndrAIa sends new .jpegs at least once a cycle."  

Matrix smiled as he thought of his oldest daughter Cady and her newly compiled baby boy.  He and AndrAIa both had been more than a little disappointed by her decision to move to her husband's home system and raise their family there instead of in Mainframe, but he wished his daughter all the happiness in the net.  They kept in constant touch and visited often, giving Matrix and AndrAIa the chance to see their grandson.  He only hoped that his younger daughter would someday make the decision to stay in Mainframe with her family.

Almost as if Bob was reading the renegade's mind, he asked, "Is Adell going to be able to make it to the festival?"  

"According to her email, she should be here sometime tonight." He replied with a broad smile.  "She's got some time off before her internship starts in the Super Computer's medical center, so she's spending a whole minute at home."  Matrix beamed with pride as he looked up and seemed to take notice of Ray for the first time. His smile didn't waver and he got a recognizable glint in his eye as he addressed him.  "Surfer."

"Matrix." Ray replied with the same cocky grin that the renegade already wore.  

            A number of the sprites and binomes that were in the vicinity had already started to put some distance between themselves and the two sprites that now stood grinning widely at each other.  Most of the citizens of Mainframe already knew that when the surfer and the renegade got that look in their eyes and smiled at each other, it usually resulted in some sort of disaster, often with explosive results.  

            "How the dell are you, pal?" Matrix asked with an almost sinister undertone.

At this point, people were starting to take cover under tables or benches or whatever they could find.  They had found out before, the more amicable they seemed toward each other, the more likely there was bound to be shrapnel.  

"Peachy mate," Ray said with a tone that matched Matrix's, never once breaking the broad grin on his lips, "just peachy."

"There you are, sugar," Mouse had come up behind Ray with AndrAIa, hoping to quell the mischievous sides of the two grinning sprites, "I've been looking for you to show up today.  I could use a hand over by the concessions stands if you don't mind."

Ray cast a sideways glance at his wife of now twenty-five hours.    She had hardly changed a bit since the first second he met her in a dieing Mainframe.  The strongest difference that anyone would notice was that she wore her now mostly silver hair in a long braid down her back.  She had still retained her muscles by working out regularly and had gained, at most, fifteen pounds.  "I'll be there in a nano, love.  No worries."

"Yeah, Mouse," Matrix chimed in after he noticed both of their wives looking at them suspiciously, "we're just having a friendly little chat.  Nothing to worry about."

"Well, I could use your help hanging a few of the banners, Sparky." AndrAIa said, taking hold of her husband's arm.  She knew all too well that look in his eye and along with Mouse, decided it would be best to separate the two before they managed to ruin the entire festival with their juvenile behavior.

Matrix looked over at his wife, taking note of the pleading look in her eyes.  He never liked to back down from Ray at times like these, but he still had a hard time saying no to AndrAIa, even after all these hours.

"Guess we better lend a hand to our lovely ladies then." Ray said, still glaring, unwilling to break the icy eye contact with his rival, mentally daring Matrix to be the first to go.

"I guess so." The renegade stood, unmoving, daring the surfer to do the same.

Bob had seen this before and knew that if something wasn't done to break the eye contact, they could literally stand there for micros, just staring each other down.  They were both too stubborn for their own good.  "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you two later then," he said as he walked in between the two, breaking the stare down, "I'm going to go help Dot.  Stay frosty."

Mouse and AndAIa took the opportunity to grab hold of their husbands and gently pull them away from each other while Bob had them distracted.  "Catch you later, Bob." AndrAIa replied as she led Matrix toward the entrance of the park where the large banner was to be hung.

"Later, darling." Mouse called out as Bob walked toward where Dot was busily working with the Historical Society.  She kept a good hold on the surfer's arm even though she was fairly certain that he would stay with her now that AndrAIa had taken his opposition away.  She chanced a glance at him and noticed him still looking off to where the large green sprite was now walking.  "Just wipe that thought from your processor, sugar," she said, knowing full well he was up to something.

Ray took a defensive stance and replied.  "What?" 

***

AndrAIa continued to mildly tug on her husband's arm until she felt no more resistance from him.  After all these hours, she'd thought they'd have given this childish game of theirs up.  It would at least be nice to not have to baby sit the two of them whenever they were in the same sector.  She quickly looked behind them to make sure that Ray was nowhere in sight before she let go of Matrix.  

"I know what you're doing," he said after clearly seeing her check the vicinity, "you don't have to keep watch over us like a hawk you know. "We're two grown men, not a couple of little nomes."

"I wonder about that sometimes." She muttered, rolling her eyes.

"That hurts, Andi." He put on a face of mock indignation.  "Don't you trust me enough to be around him once without doing something?'

AndrAIa burst out laughing at his inquiry.  "I can't believe you asked that." She replied as they reached their destination at the entrance of the park.  "Now do me a favor and take this banner up there and hang it." She said as she lifted the large folded piece of canvas off the table.

"Aren't you going to help me hang it?" he looked bewildered as she handed him the heavy cloth.

"I'll be down here centering it while you hang it," she replied, "just get it up there and I'll tell you what to do."

There was no getting out of it, that was for sure.  Once Andi had made up her mind that he was going to help her do something, that was it.  "Fine," he said, exasperated as he unfurled the large fabric sign, which was at least thirty feet long, "but I won't enjoy it."

"Like that's anything new, you old grouch."  She smiled as she lightly pinched his arm and gave him a friendly wink, causing him to smile in return.  He watched her as she walked back over to the table.  Despite the few little crow's feet and laugh lines that had come with age, she was hardly any different than the second he married her. She wore her hair a little shorter now, just below the shoulder, and it was lightly peppered with a few grays, but other than that, she didn't show her age.  She was still very slender and beautiful.

After she let him know that she was ready, he hopped on his zip-board and lifted one end of the banner to the top of the pole it was to be fastened to. 

"A little higher," she called out as he raised the banner slightly, "higher, keep going," she said once again, "now a little lower."

"This is going to be a long day." He thought out loud to himself.

***

Ray was busy helping to power up the concession stands and rides when a vid-window popped up in front of him, causing him to hit his head on a circuit panel.

"Ow," he called out as he sat up, "son of a …"

"Mr. Tracer, Sir."  Specky greeted him from the other side of the window from inside the Principal Office.  

"Hey, Specky," the surfer replied as he gingerly rubbed his head.  "What's up?"

"Sir, you have a priority one message coming in here in the war room."  Specky said as he hoisted his glasses up a little higher onto his eye.

"Priority one?" Ray asked a little confused, "Who's it from?"

"Unknown, Sir."  Specky replied, shaking his head, "But sensors indicate that it's coming from the web."

A knowing smile crossed the surfer's face.  "I'll be there in a nano, mate." He said as he closed the window and picked up his baud.  

"Hey, where are you going?" Mouse called out to him as she saw him hop on the baud and take to the air. "I thought you were going to help me get all these hooked up and ready to go."

"I'll be back in a nano, love." Ray said as he swung the baud around to face her.  "Got a message coming in at the P.O." He paused for a moment before he continued with a flirtatious raise of the eyebrow, "Wanna hop on my baud and take a ride?"

Mouse couldn't help but smile and start to laugh as she rolled her eyes at the inquiry.  "Afraid I have a lot to finish up here, sugar." She winked as she continued, "But I just might take a rain check on that ride, darling."

            He drifted the baud down low enough until he was almost eye level with his wife, took her face in his hands and kissed her.  "I'll be taking you up on that one, love." He whispered, then raised the baud up quickly, leaving Mouse grinning on the ground.  He swung the baud around in the opposite direction and headed toward the Principal Office.

            Mouse couldn't help but watch her husband as he glided off.  After all these hours, he could still sweep her off her feet.  Even with his silver hair and weathered face, he was an incredibly handsome man.  She was still looking at him from behind when she heard a familiar voice behind her.

            "You do realize he's headed to the entrance of the park, don't you?"  Dot said as Mouse's smile quickly turned into a frown.  After all these hours of feuding and vendettas, she hardly had the energy to even care.  There was only one thing that even came to mind as she sighed and shook her head.

            "Spam it all."

***

As Ray flew his baud toward the entrance of the park on his way to the P.O., he was happy to see an opportunity present itself to him.  Off in the distance he saw Matrix busily hanging the banner while on a zip-board.  Now would be the perfect time to get him back for painting the eyes on his goggles while he was sleeping.  

He slowly and carefully drifted the baud closer to the large green sprite, using the data trees as cover.  He didn't want to be spotted too soon.  When AndrAia had turned her attention to something else momentarily and Matrix had almost finished hanging the banner, he made his move.  He quickly flew the baud out from the cover of the trees and directly underneath the hovering sprite.  

"Hey Matrix, saaaaaay gravity." The surfer called out as he grabbed the zip-board out from under Matrix's large feet and kept flying.  

"What the… "  was all that Matrix was able to say before having to grab onto the newly centered banner above him.  He managed to pull himself up enough to grab the top of it and hang there, listening to the surfer's wild maniacal laughter in the background as he flew away with his zip-board.  "Tracer!" He yelled out from his precarious position above the ground.

Ray turned the baud around to take a look at his handy work and couldn't help but laugh wildly at the sight he saw.  The big green sprite was dangling from the center of the banner, which was now very crooked once again, kicking and flailing his legs about in order to stay in the air.  "No time to hang around with you, mate.  Got things to do, you know." He said as he once again turned toward the Principal Office. 

"You might need this to get him down from there."  He said as he tossed the zip-board down on the table in front of AndrAIa, who seemed almost apathetic as to what was happening.  Like Mouse, she had all but given up on trying to get the two sprites to stop all their nonsense and compile up.  They realized hours ago that no matter what they said or did, it wasn't going to stop them.  All they could do was just pray to the User that they didn't get themselves or each other deleted in the process.

"You better get out of here before I do." She said with a sigh.  "It's going to take him a while to cool down from this one."

"See you later then, lovely lady." He said just before giving her a quick kiss on the cheek, making sure the still flailing angry sprite took notice.  

"I'll get you for this one, Tracer!" Matrix yelled as he watched the short exchange between his wife and the surfer.

AndrAIa rolled her eyes in the futility of it all.  Maybe she'd just let him cool down up there for a little while.

***

  
  
          It had been fifteen hours since Specky had been appointed System Administrator, but he still felt the pangs of anxiety that he had when he first got the position when Phong retired. Although Dot and the rest of the staff had assured him that he was doing a splendid job, he continued to feel that he wasn't quite the Administrator that his mentor had once been.   
  
             Phong had been so much more than a mere System Administrator to the Mainframers. He had been a friend, a teacher, a doctor, a psychologist, and a shoulder to cry on in his day. Specky always felt that perhaps he would grow into the position in time, but time seemed to be ticking away and he still felt inept. He certainly considered himself a friend to the staff, and as for doctor or psychologist, he knew that was beyond his means. But when it came to the wisdom of the old sprite, he felt that at his age, he should be at least half as wise as old Phong. He never expected to have all these doubts after all these hours.   
  
              As Specky sat and contemplated at his console, the door to the war room opened with an audible whir and Ray came through, carrying his baud. "Hey Specky," he said as he casually walked over to the vid-station, "can you open the channel for me?"   
  
              "Sure thing, Mr. Tracer Sir," Specky replied as he pushed some buttons on the console, "frequency opening now."   
  
              "Thanks, Speck." Ray smiled at the aging binome and turned his attention to the vid-window in front of him. "This is Ray Tracer of system Mainframe, state your name and function." The vid-screen crackled and hissed with static before a clear visual was established.   
  
             "What's with the formalities, Dad?" The face of the surfer's son was now smiling back at him with a familiar confidence.   
  
            "Nick," Ray's face beamed at the sight of his son in his web shields. "I wasn't expecting to see you until tomorrow. What's up?"   
  
           "I finished up my exams and managed to knock off a second early. I figured I'd surprise Mom." He said with a satisfied grin. Ray couldn't help but notice how much he reminded him of himself when he was a lad. He had inherited most of Ray's code at birth and had been going into the web with him almost all his life. With the exception of his large brown eyes, which were now hidden behind a visor, and his spikey tangle of orange hair, he was the spitting image of Ray. He glanced over his father's shoulder in the window. "Hey Specky, how are you?"   
  
          "Hello Nick," the binome replied with a smile. It had been a long time since he had seen the young man and he was happy to see that he was the same easy going sprite that he remembered. "Are you all set for the big graduation?"   
  
           "I sure hope so." Nick said with a slight grimace.   
  
          "Well I certainly hope so," Ray replied with a raised eyebrow and a grin, "your mother and I forked over enough cash for it already."

Nick laughed slightly as he turned his attention back to his father. "How is Mom?"   
  
            Ray hesitated slightly before answering. "Well, she's... the same for the most part..."   
  
           Specky noticed the hesitation in the surfer's voice and figured that they wanted to discuss private family concerns. "I'll be in my office if you need me for anything Mr. Tracer." He said as he headed toward the door.   
  
         "Oh, alright Specky," Ray replied, "thanks for letting me know about the call."   
  
          "Anytime, Mr. Tracer." He smiled and closed the door behind him.   
  
          Nick began to laugh on the other side of the vid-window after hearing the office door close. "Works every time."   
  
         "Like a charm." Ray said as a wicked grin came across his face. "So, did you manage to get the stuff I asked for?"   
  
         "You don't think I'm in the web for my health, do you?" He replied with the same grin as his father. "This stuff won't get past security with conventional net travel. The only ones with clearance to carry this stuff are the guardians, and I think they have to have permits."   
  
         "That's my boy." Ray stated proudly to his son. "How did you manage to get it?"   
  
"Ah ah," the young sprite began, "I don't tell you how I got it unless you tell me what you plan to do with it. This doesn't have anything to do with Matrix does it?" He said with a look of mild concern.   
  
        "Let's just say it's for a little project I'm working on right now." Ray gave a wide grin as his son raised an eyebrow to him.   
  
        "Alright," Nick sighed, obviously defeated, "I'll be home in about four micros. Don't tell Mom, I want her to be surprised."   
  
         "You got it, lad. See you then." The vid-screen closed in front of him and Ray was left alone in the war room. Mouse sure would be surprised when Nick came home a second early. And soon after that, someone else was going to get the surprise of their life.


	3. What's the worst that could happen?

**Chapter 2:**

**What's the worst that could happen?**

It had been several micros since AndrAIa had gotten Matrix down from the banner incident, but he still brooded and thought about how he would get even for it.  He paced back and forth through the living room of their home, grumbling to himself while AndrAIa prepared a home cooked meal for the return of their youngest daughter.  It had been minutes since she'd been home and she wanted everything to be perfect.  

"He is so deleted the next time I see him." Matrix's gripe was lost to the walls.  AndrAia had stopped listening two micros ago and was rather used to just tuning him out when he got like this.  "And I mean QuickTime movie file of the cycle, MNN all second coverage kind of deleted.  Ray Tracer is going down.  He will not get away with this one."

"Mom, he's doing it again."  A voice called out from the front door as it closed.  Matrix turned to see his youngest daughter, Adell, setting a large duffel bag on the floor and smiling sweetly at him.  "Hi Daddy," she greeted him as she came toward him and wrapped her arms around him in a big hug, "I'm home."

"Glad to have you back, Princess." He said, returning the embrace.  "We've missed you so much."  He pulled her out to arms length and gave a rarely seen sweet smile, one he usually only gave to his family.  He couldn't believe how much she had grown in just the past couple of hours.  Like most of the Matrix family, she had the bright green coloring, dark hair and violet eyes of her father, and although she wore her hair long, she was still the spitting image of a young Dot.  "How's school been going?" he asked.

"Great," she replied with a slight sneer, "if you like being cooped up in a lab all second."  Her sneer turned to a smile as she continued, "But it will all be worth it once I start my internship.  I'm pretty sure I aced the finals."

"That's great, Kiddo," Matrix beamed with pride as he hugged his daughter once again, "I'm so proud of you.  Dr. Matrix is going to look pretty good on the family reunion invitations."

Adell giggled slightly at her father's words.  "Thanks, Daddy."

"I thought I heard someone come in."  AndrAIa said as she entered the living room.  "Why didn't you tell me she was home?" she asked, smirking at her husband and giving her daughter a hug.  "How was your trip?" she asked.

"Pretty uneventful," Adell answered, "but long.  I'm starving." She said, rolling her eyes.

"Good, I made your favorite for dinner, vegetable lasagna."  Matrix groaned slightly upon hearing it.  "Don't worry, there's a couple of steaks on the grill for you and Enzo, Sparky."

"Uncle Enzo's coming?" Adell's eyes brightened as they entered the kitchen. "Pixelacious!  I haven't seen him in minutes."

Matrix's grin grew wide at the mention of his younger brother.  The look didn't go unnoticed by his daughter though.  "Oh no, don't tell me you two are going to plot against Mr. Tracer again."

"Who said anything about plotting?"  Matrix replied, still holding the grin on his face.  "Can't a guy just be happy to see his brother?"

"Oh come on Dad, I heard you barking at the walls when I came in."  She replied as she helped herself to a cup of java on the counter.  "So what happened this time?" she asked with a sidelong glance.

AndrAia started snickering after her daughter asked the question.  

"What?" He asked in a harsh tone.  "It wasn't funny."

"No," she said, still giggling, "it wasn't.  It was stupid and dangerous and could have gotten one of you deleted."

"Than why are you laughing?"  He asked with a smirk.

AndrAIa had a hard time answering through her giggling.  "I don't know, maybe it was just the sight of your legs kicking and…" she couldn't finish the sentence after bursting out in a fit of laughter.

Adell now started to laugh as well and spoke to her mother.  "You didn't happen to get a .jpeg of that did you?"

"I wish." She answered, still laughing.

"I don't believe this."  Matrix rolled his eyes and headed toward the living room.  "Where the dell is Enzo?"

***

It had been over an hour since Nick had been in Mainframe, yet very little seemed any different than when he had left. All the businesses, large and small, were still in the same place.  All the houses that he recognized were still there, along with a few new additions to the rural areas.  He had loved this city all his life and regarded many of its citizens as his family.  But even now as he flew over the familiar landscape of his home, he wondered how he could be so compelled to leave it?

He remembered feeling the pull even as a child, always wanting to go on trips through the net with his father or even into the web.  His mother had never been too crazy about letting him go, but had allowed it, knowing the search engine protocol raced through his code and the longing to find other systems, peoples and cities was too great a pull for her to stop.  Even while away at school, he found it hard to concentrate now and then.  It took all the will he had at times to keep himself from packing a few belongings and heading off into the net.  But right now, just like after a cycle-end in the web when he was a boy, it felt good to be home again.

As he glided his baud lower toward the city, he couldn't help but notice the activity still going on at Floating Point.  He swung around in that direction to take a look to see if his parents might still be there, figuring that if they were around, they were most likely to be on the top level where the carnival was setting up.  When he didn't spot them there, he searched on the second level around the stage where the reenactment of the system restart was scheduled to be.  

"Well, look what the nulls dragged in." He heard a familiar voice from behind him as he set the baud down.  As he turned around he realized it was the person he least wanted to see at this moment, considering the illegal cargo tucked away in his duffel bag.  The Prime Guardian stood there, smiling at him, as he said, "Long time, no see, Nick.  Home a little early, aren't you?"

"Oh, hey Bob," Nick did his best to act nonchalantly as he spoke, "I was just looking for my parents.  Have they been around here?"

"You just missed them."  Bob smiled and went to give him a friendly clap on the shoulder.  Nick flinched slightly as the clap landed and breathed a silent sigh of relief when it was over.  The volatile nature of the contraband in his bag had him on edge to say the least.  "They left about a half a millie ago.  They're probably home by now." He smiled at the young man, and then looked at him quizzically.  "I thought you weren't coming back until tomorrow."

"I wasn't going to, but I got off a day ahead of time, so I figured I'd surprise Mom." The young man said with a confident smile.

"Well, you're sure going to surprise her with that load of laundry there, Nick." Bob said, pointing to the large and very heavy looking duffel bag on the shoulder of the young sprite.  "You could almost smuggle something out of the system in a bag that size." The Prime Guardian laughed at his own joke.

Nick tried to keep calm and softly laughed with Bob.  "Hehe, yeah, you probably could."  He was pretty sure that the Prime Guardian hadn't suspected anything unusual, but he certainly didn't want to press his luck with his chances.  "Well, it was nice seeing you again, Bob," Nick began, "but, I'm going to go and find my parents.  Tell Dot I said hi."

"Hey," Bob started as Nick hopped on his baud, "if you stick around a few more nanos, Dot and I can give you a lift home.  I've got the old 262 purring like a kitten.  It'd probably be easier than lugging that thing all the way home."

"That's alright," the young sprite gently protested, "I've lugged it all the way here through the web.  I can make it a few more sectors home." He said with a satisfied grin.

Bob thought this was highly unusual for Nick since any other time, he was more than eager to go for a spin in the old classic.  "Well, alright, if you're sure."

"I'm sure, Bob." He said as he lifted the baud higher off the ground.  "Thanks for the offer though.  Maybe tomorrow after I'm settled and before the festival starts, we can go for a spin?"

Bob smiled and nodded in agreement.  "I'd like that." He said as he watched Nick ascend into the night air.  "See you tomorrow."

As Bob watched Nick head to Kits sector to his parent's home, he found himself amazed for the umpteenth time that day at how quickly time had passed since he arrived in Mainframe.  Nick was the youngest of all the children born to the original sprites at the restart, and here he was now, a fully-grown man.  He was pulled from his musings quickly by a voice behind him.

"Was that Nick flying off?"  Dot looked a little stunned at the sight of him.  "I thought he didn't get back until tomorrow."

"He wanted to surprise Mouse." He said matter of factly before continuing. "Do you ever feel like time is just going by too fast to take it all in?" 

Dot considered the question for a moment but then answered, "I think you're getting a little too nostalgic in your old age, dear." She said as she wrapped her arms around his waist from behind him.  

Bob smiled and laughed gently at her remark. "Maybe I am."  He turned around to face her and put his arms around her shoulders and pulled her closer, kissing her forehead.  "Maybe I am."  He sighed and held his wife as they watched the evening light wane into the darkness of night and thought, yet another day was gone and they would never be able to get it back.

***

Any other time, Nick would have been more than glad to get a ride in the old 262.  He had loved that car ever since he was a boy.  But considering the circumstances with the illegal formats that were still hidden in his duffel bag, he felt it would be best, no matter how good he was at covering things, to not take the chance of getting caught.  Bob was one of the most understanding sprites he knew, but when push came to shove, he was still the Prime Guardian, and a damn good one at that.  If Nick were to be caught carrying these through the net, there would be Dell to pay no matter if he was Mouse and Ray's boy or not.  Right now the only thing on his processor was to get these things to a safe place and stow them away before he did get caught.

He quietly made his way to the small house that he grew up in, so as not to let on to his parents that he was home just yet.  He drifted silently on his baud to the garage where ship was parked and quietly opened the door.  The last remaining light of the day was just enough to find his way to the small storage closet and open the door.  He carefully slid the duffel bag off his shoulder and opened the outer compartment and removed the three very old and volatile unformat commands that he had been carrying through the web.

After making sure that each was securely wrapped and placed, he covered them with an old tarp that had been folded on a storage shelf.  He closed and locked the storage closet behind him and left the garage, relieved that he was no longer carrying the unstable commands.  One good jolt of anything and they could go off unexpectedly.  At least now he was fairly sure that they were safe.

As he made his way to the house, he could hear his mother's laughter coming from inside, probably from something his dad had either said or done.  It was one of the things that he admired about his parents.  They always found a reason to laugh, no matter how bad things would get.  There were times he could remember while growing up when things would get him down, be it girls or school work or something else, they never pushed the issue or forced him to talk, but always found a way to cheer him up.  Even when they argued, it didn't last long and it never got too serious.  They would always find something humorous in it before it did.

As he opened the door, his mother's laughter carried through the house.  He could hear his dad talking about something and laughing as well, although he couldn't quite tell what he was saying yet.  He set his duffel bag down on the floor, propped his baud next to the old man's and quietly made his way to the kitchen where the voices were coming from. 

***

"You didn't."  Mouse questioned her husband after telling her what exactly had happened to the banner.

Ray sat on the counter of their kitchen, grinning and drinking a bottle of I/O while explaining the uproar that happened at the park earlier in the day.  "I did." He said proudly.  "I loved every nano of it too."

Mouse just shook her head.  "I _would_ say that I can't believe that you did that, but after all the things I've seen the two of you do to each other over the past hours, I _can_ believe it."  She shook her head again, letting a small grin appear on her face.

Ray grinned even more as he said, "You should have seen his legs flailing around." He studied her face a little more closely and noticed her trying to keep a straight face.  He knew she didn't want to think it was funny but was finding it hard not to.  "He looked like a little baby bird falling out of its nest."

Mouse couldn't contain her laughter any longer as she pictured it in her processor.  Just the thought of big old tough Matrix hanging from a banner and swinging his legs around was too much.  She tried to contain it after a short nano and managed to say, "That's not funny."

"Oh come off it, love." Ray said with a huge smile.  "You know it is."

"So this is what you do while I'm away," Nick's voice interrupted them, "sit around and make jokes and drink I/O without me?" He said with a smile.

Mouse turned to see her son standing in the entranceway to the kitchen.  "Nick!" she exclaimed as she got up from her chair and crossed the room to meet him. "Oh Baby, it's so good to see you." She threw her arms around him and hugged him tight.

"It's good to see you too, Mom." He said as he returned the embrace.  

Ray walked up behind Mouse and let her finish getting her hug before putting his arms around the young sprite himself.  "We really missed you, Boyo." He said out loud before whispering, "Where's the stuff?"

"In the garage." Nick whispered back before saying, "I missed you too."  

"You weren't supposed to be home until tomorrow, sugar." Mouse said as she pulled some leftovers out of the fridge.  "I would have made something special if I knew you were going to be home tonight."

"Since when did that ever stop me from eating you out of house and home?"  Nick asked with a sly grin.

"Never." Mouse and Ray answered at the same time.

Nick laughed slightly as he went to the fridge and started pulling out what looked good to him and thought to himself, it was definitely good to be home.

***

"Are you finished, Uncle Enzo?"  Adell asked as she cleared the picnic table of the dishes and debris from the cookout.  They had decided to have their dinner out on the patio since it was such a pleasant evening outside.

"Yeah, all done, Princess," he said as he slid his plate to his side for her to reach it better.  "Oh, and take this too, while you're at it." He said as he put his glass on top of the plate she had just picked up.

"And don't forget this," Matrix said as he piled his own glass on top, "or this." He added a bottle of ketchup.

"Or even this." Enzo threw his paper napkin at the pile of dishes the girl was now holding and laughed.

"Very funny," she replied with a smirk, "but I think I'll just make a second trip." She carried the dishes back into the house and left the two men to sit in the torchlight and talk.

"I really missed doing that to her." Enzo said with a small laugh.  "At least she has a sense of humor about it.  Remember when we used to do that to Cady?"

Matrix couldn't help but laugh.  "User, she used to get so spammed mad at us for doing that." He said as he remembered it fondly. "She had her mother's temper, though."

Enzo burst into a fit of laughter at his brother's remark.  "Dude, that is the funniest thing I think you've ever said."

"What?" Matrix smirked.

"You're kidding, right?" Enzo asked with a raised eyebrow and a grin. "AndrAIa's temper?"

"You don't think Andi has a temper?"

"Oh, I know she has a temper." Enzo slightly laughed before continuing.  "Nothing like yours, though."

"Hey, I've mellowed out a lot over the hours." Matrix said with a proud grin.

"This is true," Enzo had to admit, "except when it comes to a certain surfer." He started to laugh once more.

Matrix's face turned to a glare as he thought about what happened earlier in the day.  "Speaking of which," he said as he turned to face his brother, "I could use a favor."

"Oh no," The younger of the two replied with a sigh, "not again."

"Oh come on, Enzo."  Matrix almost pleaded with his younger brother.  "You usually come up with better stuff than I can, and I really need to get him back for this afternoon in the park." He said with an almost sinister tone.

"Dude, you know I hate when you drag me into this stuff." Enzo protested.  "Why can't you just let it go?"

"Let it go?"  Matrix replied in shock.  "After what he did today?  I don't think so."

"Dude, this isn't my war." Enzo protested once again.  "Why do insist on making me a pawn?"

"Admit it, Enzo." Matrix grinned at the younger man. "You get just as much of a kick out of it as I do when it turns out like we plan it."

"No I don't." he started to laugh as he replied.

"Ah ha!  Yes you do." Matrix's smile broadened when he saw how Enzo was trying to hide the grin on his face.  Admit it." 

"Alright, alright," he said as he laughed slightly still, "I think it's sort of cool when I see one of my plans work." He took a serious tone as he continued.  "But not if someone gets hurt."

"No one is going to get hurt, Bro." Matrix reassured his brother.  "The only thing that'll end up getting hurt is the surfer's pride."  He grinned with anticipation now. "Besides, with you helping me," he continued, "what's the worst that could happen?"

***

Mouse awoke the next morning to the smell of fresh java coming from the kitchen, something she wasn't quite used to since she was usually the first to rise on the cycle ends.  Upon opening her eyes, she noticed the morning's light streaming in through the bedroom window.  She turned her head and glanced over to the clock by the bedside and noticed it was already past 0900 and Ray was nowhere in the room.  They must have let her sleep in for once, she thought as she pulled back the covers and climbed out of bed.

After sliding on her robe and quickly pulling back her hair, she made her way to the kitchen to see her husband and her son busily making breakfast.  Mouse stood still and raised an eyebrow at the pair.  This had only happened a few times before that she could recall, and every time it did, they were up to something.

"Well, looky here." Mouse began as she watched Nick and Ray doing their best impression of gourmet chefs.  "I got to say, this is a real treat being able to sleep in and having two handsome men cook my breakfast for me."  

"Good morning, Mom." Nick turned and said with a smile.

Ray turned to his wife and gave her his usual confident smile.  "Good morning, love," he said as he lifted a pan off the stove and flipped a flapjack in midair, "did you sleep well?"

"I sure did, sugar." She walked over and kissed her husband's cheek, then leaned over and kissed her son on his while he worked on the sausage.  "Makes me wonder just what the two of you are up to." She said with a crooked smile.

"Now why would you say a thing like that?" Ray put on an indignant look over a grin at the question.  Nick just shook his head and grinned as he looked toward his mother.

"Because, every time you let me sleep in and make breakfast," she narrowed her eyes and pointed between the two of them, "something 'accidentally' gets blown up, crushed or vaporized.  Now, just what are you two up to, and when can the rest of us expect to call the medics?"

"That hurts, Mom."  Nick said as he feigned a painful expression.  "That really hurts."

"That was all just coincidence and you know it." Ray said with mock scorn.  "And it wasn't all our fault anyway."

"Oh, of course not." Mouse rolled her eyes and sat down at the table while Ray brought her a cup of java.  

"Isn't it possible that we cooked this lovely breakfast out of the goodness of our hearts?" Nick chimed in as he saw his mother's suspicions grow.

"Yeah, don't you think we're capable of feeling that maybe you do so much for us that we'd just like to give back to you for once?"  Ray added.

Mouse shook her head.  She still had the sneaking suspicion that they were up to something, but right now she just didn't have the energy to argue.  "Alright, alright, let's just have breakfast and drop the whole thing." She laughed slightly before taking a sip of her java.

After the two men brought over plates of food, silverware and various condiments for the meal, they sat down with Mouse at the table to enjoy their breakfast.  As she prepared to take her first bite, she noticed that both of them seemed to be in hurry for some reason.  They both ate at an alarmingly fast pace and were finished by the time she had taken her fourth bite.  

"Say Nick," Ray began after he finished his food, "I've been working on some projects out in the garage lately.  Care to take a look at them?"

"Sure Dad," Nick said with a knowing nod, "sounds pretty interesting."

Mouse looked back and forth between the two.  Ray hadn't been in the garage for cycles.  "What projects?" she asked.

Ray did his best to give her an answer.  "Just some things that I've been working on for a while now." He and Nick got up from their seats and headed for the door.  "We'll take care of the dishes when we get back in, love.  Don't worry."  

Nick groaned slightly at the word dishes, but then smiled as he saw the stunned look on his mother's face.  "We'll be right back, Mom."  They both headed out the door before she could protest.

They were definitely up to something.  She didn't know what it was, but she had a feeling it had something to do with Matrix.  As she finished her breakfast alone and sipped on her java, she wondered if she should call Dot and have her beef up the security at the festival that night.  With those two acting the way they were, anything could happen.

***

The tarp slowly raised and exposed the three volatile unformat commands that sat on the shelf in the storage closet.  "Be careful, Dad." Nick said as Ray smiled and ran a finger over one of the gold colored shells.  "Any little thing could set them off."

"I know." Ray answered with a large grin.  He looked closer at them and began to speak to the small objects.  "I'm going to name you, Matrix's new bike." He said as he laughed almost evilly and gently petted the object.

Nick rolled his eyes as his father continued to laugh.  "I knew this had something to do with Matrix." The young sprite muttered.

"Don't tell me you expected anything else," Ray began with a sidelong glance to his son, "you should know me better than that, Boyo."

"It's never going to end, is it?" Nick asked, shaking his head.

"Not as long as I'm processing and he keeps trying to out do me." Ray glared at the small objects on the shelf, thinking of all the possibilities.  "I'll be an old geezer in a wheel chair like Phong and still get even with him every time."

"You don't think that you're taking this just a little too far?  I mean, unformatting his new bike seems pretty serious."  Nick asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You know Nick, you're starting to sound like your mother."  Ray said as he glanced over to his son.

Nick beamed at his father's words.  "Well, she is a pretty smart lady, you have to admit."

Ray chuckled slightly as he covered the volatile commands back up.  "Well, the smarter you are, the easier it will be to pull this off.  Now, let's get down to business and go over the plan one more time."

Nick shook his head once more as his father went over the plan.  Deep down, he knew that no good could come of this.


	4. The Unlaid plans of Sprites

**Chapter Three:**

**The Un-laid Plans of Sprites:**

The park was beautifully decorated by the time Specky arrived with Phong.  He gingerly pushed the old sprite's wheelchair through the maze of friendly faces and bustling activity of the festival, stopping several times to say hello to old friends, neighbors and well wishers.  Before arriving at the park, it had struck the aging binome just how much things had changed for the old sprite who was now well past his 100th hour.  He didn't seem to have a strong grasp on reality any more, as he once did while working as the System Administrator.  At times, Phong didn't even seem to recognize those that he called his family and loved ones and it tore Specky's heart to pieces to see him like that.  

            The festival was not quite in full swing, but there were many sprites and binomes taking in the lavish decorations and the lovely second.  People were arriving from all over the city to begin the festivities and to hopefully find a bargain at the vast flea market that had been set up.  As the crowd began to thicken, Specky took the opportunity to find a shady spot by a park bench and sat down with his old friend.

            "What a glorious second for a wedding." Phong stated as he looked around the busy park.

            "We're not at a wedding Phong," Specky corrected the old sprite, "this is the restart festival.  It's been 35 hours since the restart."  He almost shouted due to Phong's considerable hearing loss.

            "Ah yes, the restart." Phong's face grew dim and it seemed he was recalling that day from the past to his now fading memory.  A nano later, it was apparent that he didn't recall it at all.  "What a lovely second for a wedding." He said once again.

            Specky sighed heavily.  It saddened him deeply to see the once insightful and keen witted sprite now struggle with the simplest of memories.  Up until just a few hours ago, Phong had managed to stay aware of his surroundings, although the signs of aging had begun to show increasingly through the hours.  Now it seemed that he was lost, no longer a part of the system around him, and it made Specky wonder about the fate they all would share someday when age took them all.  He patted Phong's wiry hand and with a heavy sigh he said, "Yes Phong, it's a beautiful second for a wedding."

            "Well, if it ain't two of my favorite gentlemen in the whole net."  The familiar voice came from behind them.  Specky looked around to see Mouse coming toward them on her zipboard.  He noticed that Ray and Nick weren't too far behind her, talking to each other.  "Phong, it's so good to see you." She said as she bent down to embrace him.  

            "Ah, it's good to see you too, my child."  It seemed that the fog had been lifted from the old sprite's mind as he noticeably recognized Mouse.  "Are you ready to walk down the aisle?"

            Mouse pulled back a little upon hearing the inquiry, wondering if perhaps she had heard him right.  She raised an eyebrow and looked to Specky.

            "Oh dear," the binome replied, "I'm afraid he still thinks that he's at a wedding."

            Mouse nodded in understanding and looked back to Phong, worried that he possibly didn't recognize her at all.  "Phong honey, I'm already married.  You were there, remember?"

            "Do not worry, my child," Phong continued as he took her hand in his, "Ray will make a fine husband.  He is a good sprite and he brings out the good in you, and you in him as well."  He smiled at her and patted her hand.

            Mouse couldn't help but smile at her dear old friend.  The circumstances might have been a little confused, but at least he did in fact recognize her.  She remembered him saying those very words to her twenty-five hours ago when she wasn't so sure whether or not she would marry the surfer.  She had never felt that she was one to settle down and wasn't sure that being married was right for either of them.  But Phong had managed to talk some sense into her as she recalled, and she had never regretted the decision since.  Thinking about this, she squeezed his stiff and spindly hand gently in hers and kissed him on the forehead.  "Thank you Phong." She said as the old sprite blushed slightly.  "You're right, of course."

            He smiled and nodded at her.  "Now," he began once again, "what does someone have to do to get some cake?"

***

            "Now remember to keep your eyes peeled for Matrix." The surfer said to his son as they hung back slightly from Mouse.  

            "Don't worry Dad, I'll let you know if I see him." He said out of the corner of his mouth, making sure that no one could hear their hushed conversation.  

            "Don't act so nervous, Son." Ray said as he patted his son's shoulder.  "Someone is bound to think you're up to something." He smirked at the look that Nick gave him, and then continued.  "You sure you don't want to be the one to plant the command on the bike?  He won't be expecting you to do anything and I'm sure he'll be keeping a good eye on me after yesterday."

            "Yes, I'm sure." The young sprite said firmly.  "I haven't been around in a while and I don't even know what the bike looks like, remember?  Besides, Matrix will probably be so busy trying to get even with you, he won't even notice."

            "Hey, what do you mean get even with me?" Ray said as he grinned at his son.  "I was just getting even with him.  He starts it all, you know."

            Nick laughed slightly at his Dad's words.  "Sure Dad, whatever you say.  Just make sure you don't get caught with that command.  We could both get into a lot of trouble having that thing, not to mention having two more in the…"

            "Shh…" Ray cut him off as they neared the park bench where Mouse was now giving Phong a hug.  She looked genuinely happy to see him and both Ray and Nick smiled as they saw the joy in her eyes.  They slowly approached and watched as she kissed him on the forehead and held his hand.  Specky noticed them from the corner of his eye as they came around the side.

            "Well, hello there Nick."  He said as he saw the young sprite.  He stood up and took the lads hand in his and shook it vigorously.  "It's good to have you back in Mainframe."

            "Hi Specky." Nick replied as he returned the handshake, almost knocking Specky off his feet. "It's good to be back.  It's good to see you too.  How've you been?"

            "Just the usual around here," Specky stated, "nothing special."

            "Well, at least things are running smoothly then." Nick said as he looked over the top of Specky's head to see Phong looking in his direction.  "Hello, Phong."  He walked slowly to the old sprite in the wheelchair and knelt next to his mother.  "How are you?"

            Phong gazed intently at the young sprite in front of him and a smile crossed his face.  "Ah, hello my son." He said enthusiastically.  "Have you come to see the President?  I believe that she has stepped out for a moment."

            Nick sighed along with his mother, but he couldn't help but smile.  Phong might not have recognized him, but his warmth and caring nature were still abundant.  "Actually, I came to see you, Phong."

         "Oh, that is good. I have something for you," Phong said as he slid open his drawer and began rummaging through it, "I know it's in here somewhere. Ah, here it is." He pulled out a small box marked 'paper clips' and handed it to Nick. "Do not open it yet."  
  
         "When am I supposed to open it?" He said as he took the box from Phong.  
  
         "When the time is right." Phong simply replied with a nod.  
  
         Nick was a little confused by the old sprite's request, but he humored him and kept the little box and put it in his pocket. "Thanks Phong," he said as he stood up, "I'll remember that."  
  
         Phong nodded once more. "Now, about that cake?"

***

            "C'mon Dad, you don't want to be the last one there, do you?"  Adell's voice rang out from the back of the bike.  "Pick up the pace a little!"

            Matrix grinned as his daughter playfully kicked at the sides of the bike to spur it on.  "Alright," he replied, "hold on, but don't say I didn't warn you."  He twisted the throttle and they shot forward like a rocket, Adell voicing her agreement as they picked up speed.  She gave her mother and uncle an exaggerated wave as they were quickly being left behind.

            "Are we going to let them get away with that?" AndrAIa asked with a half smile as she looked toward Enzo, who already had that competitive look in his eye.

            "I don't think so."  He replied as he twisted the throttle on his own bike while AndrAIa did the same to hers, racing toward the now distant pair on Matrix's new bike.

            Adell giggled with glee as her father made a steep dive for Floating Point Park.  Although she wanted nothing more than to raise her hands above her head and say 'Wheeee', she held tight to him, knowing that he would only reprimand her for her disregard to her own safety if she did.  She'd already heard the speech too many times to recall and wasn't willing to go through it again if she didn't have to.  Beside that, he was in an uncharacteristically good mood, and she certainly didn't want to do anything to spoil it.

            As Matrix sat the bike down gently in the park and hit the kill switch, the roar of engines could be heard in the distance as Enzo and AndrAIa fought to catch up to the father and daughter.  Matrix shielded his eyes as he strained to see the pair, still at least a half a sector away.  Adell climbed off the back of the bike as Matrix still laughed at the sight of them racing.  "Care to put some credits on who the winner will be?"  He asked as he climbed off.

            "Looks too close to call as it is." She replied as she squinted her eyes toward the distant pair.  "Besides, I really don't have the extra credits to be gambling with right now."  She put on a sad puppy-dog face and batted her eyes pitifully in an attempt to guilt her father into giving her some extra spending cash.  "Starving medic student, remember?"  

            Matrix rolled his eyes and shook his head as he reached for his wallet.  "That's low, even for you kiddo."

            "It works, doesn't it?"  She added with a grin as she held out her hand.

            Matrix shook his head again as he handed her some credits.  "Too well.  Don't go blowing it all on spam, you hear?"

            "Does that mean I/O shots and male strippers are out?"  She asked with a giggle as her father retorted with a stern look.  "I was just kidding, Daddy."

            He rolled his eyes once again. "User, you act like your mother."

            "I'll take that as a compliment."  She smiled and gave her father a quick kiss on the cheek.  "I'm going to go and check stuff out.  I'll meet up with you guys later."

            He was about to yell to her to be careful, but the sound of roaring engines cut him off as his wife and brother landed close by.  He watched as they killed the motors and got off their bikes.  "Where's Adell headed in such a hurry?"  AndrAIa asked.

            Enzo laughed as he gave his brother a clap on the shoulder.  "You gave her credits, didn't you?"

            "Yeah," he said as he watched her walk off in the distance, "I have a feeling we won't be seeing her for a while."

            "You'd think you'd learn by now." AndrAIa laughed as her husband looked at her wearily.  

            "It's the face," Matrix said with an accusing tone to his wife, "she gave me the face again.  You know which one I mean.  That little puppy-dog face that she learned from you."

            "It works, doesn't it?"  She said through a laugh.

            Matrix sighed heavily and rolled his eyes for the countless time that second.  It was just like having back up copies of the same sprite in his household.  Now he began to realize what he and Enzo must have been like for everyone else, no matter how different they looked.  He gave AndrAIa a stern look and said with mock disgust, "Don't even talk to me."

***

            Adell wandered around the park, not really having a specific destination in mind.  She saw a lot of old friends and neighbors that she hadn't seen in a long time, and made sure to say hello to as many of them as she could.  She hadn't realized fully until now just how much she had missed Mainframe.  As much as she loved her studies and looked forward to her internship, it felt good to be home.  

            As she walked around looking at the attractions and various flea markets, she spotted some very familiar faces gathered around a park bench.  She made her way over to them quickly, having missed them so much while she was gone.  Ray and Mouse had been like family to her while she was growing up, and Phong had been a gentle grandfather figure for as long as she could remember.  She also spotted the very familiar flaming red hair of her former playmate, Nick.

            Memories came flooding back to her of when they were children.  Being relatively close in age and not having a lot of other sprites the same age to play with, they spent a lot of their time together playing zip tag in the park, hide and seek in the Principal Office, or vector ball and circuit racing as they got a little older.  

            A grin came over her face as she quickly snuck up behind her childhood friend, unnoticed.  "Guess who." She taunted as she covered his visor with her hands.

            It didn't take Nick long to realize who it was behind him.  "The net's friendliest mugger?"  He replied as everyone turned to them. 

            "Adell," Mouse said enthusiastically as Adell uncovered Nick's eyes, "it's so good to see you, sugah."  She put her arms around the girl and embraced her.  She had been like a second child to Mouse when she was young and still felt a bond with her, despite her being no code relation.   

            "It's good to see you too, Mouse." Adell said as she returned the embrace.

            "Don't go hogging all the hugs, Mom." Nick admonished as he grabbed both of them and gave them a squeeze, causing them to laugh.

            "My turn." Ray said as he pushed his way through to give Adell a hug.  "How're you doing, love?"

            "Great," she replied as she wrapped her arms around him, "I just missed you all so much."  She turned to see Specky and Phong on the bench in front of her and went to greet them as well.

            Ray knew that Matrix was there somewhere, now that Adell had made an appearance.  He made a slight nodding gesture to his son, and receiving a knowing nod in return, he took the opportunity to quietly slip away while everyone's attention was elsewhere.  

            "So, are you here all by yourself, sugah?" Mouse asked Adell after all the greetings and hugs had been taken care of. 

            "No," the young woman replied, "Mom, Dad and Uncle Enzo are around here somewhere.  I just wanted to look around at the flea markets and I know my dad doesn't really get into that." She laughed slightly as she continued. "Knowing Mom though, she should be right behind me any nano now."

            Mouse smiled as she replied, "Well, the girl always did have an eye for a bargain."  As she looked up, she noticed AndrAia coming their way.  "And speak of the devil, there she is.  I'll catch you all later, darlins.  We got some bargain hunting to do."  She gave Adell and her son each a squeeze before walking off to catch AndrAIa.  

            "So," Adell said as she turned to Nick, seeming to notice for the first time that not only was he a little taller than she remembered, but a lot more muscular, "you in any hurry to do anything, or do you have some time to kill?"  All of a sudden, it seemed strange to her to be asking him something that she wouldn't have thought twice about in her younger hours.

            "Seeing as how Mom and Dad are off on their own adventures," he smiled at her as he tried to picture her as the pigtailed girl that he grew up with, "I guess we can just… hangout for a while."  He paused for a nano, not really knowing what to say to her anymore.  She had changed so much since he last saw her and he now began to feel like a dorky 16 hour old again.  He mustered up a little courage, reminding himself that this was the same girl that would give him wedgies if he irritated her enough.  "You look really nice, by the way."

            "Thanks," she said as she blushed slightly and smiled back at him, "you're not looking too bad yourself, hotshot."  She playfully slugged him in the arm.  "You want to take a walk around the park and catch up a little?"

            "Yeah," he replied as he grinned slightly, "I'd like that.  We got a lot of catching up to do."  Nick felt almost relieved that she seemed to be the same old Adell.  She still smiled the same way and had that adventurous look in her eyes, but he couldn't help feeling different around her for some reason.  Maybe it was just that she was wearing makeup this time.  

            "I'll even buy lunch." She said as they started off. 

            "Let me guess," he grinned as he put his arm around her shoulder like he always had, "you swindled your dad out of some credits again?"

            Adell broke into laughter as they walked on.  "You know me too well."

***

            Matrix was nowhere in sight.  Ray breathed a sigh of relief as he made his way through the parking lot and over to Matrix's bike.  He knew he had to do this fast.  After the stunt he pulled the second before, Matrix would be on the lookout for anything suspicious along with trying to find him to get even.  

            As he neared the bike, he pulled out the unstable unformat command from his pocket and stared at it for just a nano.  This would take their feud to a whole new level.  It seemed that in the past couple of hours, things had been dieing down and they were starting to get bored with all the childish pranks.  This would put some spark back into their personal vendetta and give them a reason once more to stay on their toes.  

            He didn't expect anyone but Matrix to understand why this war had gone on for so long.  He had heard the speech over and over about how stubborn they were being and how they should just end it.  Neither one of them could do that though.  It was almost an unspoken agreement between the two of them.  They needed this game of cat and mouse to live.  It kept them sharp and alert.  Without it, they would simply grow old and delete.  

            Ray guided the baud next to the bike in question and knelt beside it.  He quickly opened the side hatch and very carefully installed the command onto the ignition wires.  He knew that it might not work right away, considering its age and instability, but eventually, one good knock or jolt would slowly melt it away to a puddle, giving Matrix enough time to land it before he was harmed.  

            He knew that Matrix would get even for this eventually, and the payback would be Dell, but it was worth it.  It gave him a reason to stay focused and try to get one step ahead of the game.  

            He closed the hatch as he finished and carefully looked around to see that no one had seen him.  When he was sure the coast was clear, he straightened himself, stepped onto his baud, and flew back toward the festival where he could hopefully spot and keep track of Matrix.  He was more than likely looking for him at the moment and plotting against him.  He hoped that he was.  It would make his triumph all the sweeter.

***

            While exploring the park with his brother, Matrix kept a watchful eye out for anything suspicious.  He had the unshakable feeling that something was going to happen that second.  They had been here for a couple of milliseconds already and he had yet to spot Ray, causing him to be more alert and cautious.  

            Enzo could feel the tension emanating from his older self, but tried to ignore it.  He knew all too well that getting involved just fed his brother's itch to retaliate against the surfer, and with there being so many sprites and binomes in the vicinity, it wasn't a good idea to let Matrix's paranoia run wild.

            "What do you say we grab a byte to eat?" Enzo broke the silence finally. "I'm getting kind of hungry."

            Matrix looked at his younger format as if just noticing he was there.  "Huh?  Oh, yeah.  I guess we could do that.  Now that you mention it, I'm getting a little hungry myself."

            "Come on," Enzo chuckled as he clapped his brother on the shoulder, "I'll buy, seeing as you gave all your credits to your daughter."

            Matrix rolled his eyes to Enzo and began heading to a nearby concession, when finally he spotted the surfer.  Ray didn't seem to see him, but he knew better than to underestimate him.  He acted as casually as he could while allowing his cybernetic eye to keep track of the search engine, a tactic that he used often in this ongoing grudge match.

            Ray continued his course through the park and was glad that his goggles prevented Matrix from noticing that he had seen him.  He smiled inwardly, knowing that Matrix had that eye of his trained on him the whole time he was there.  He still kept watch for anything suspicious though.  Even with Matrix in plain sight, he could be taken by surprise if he didn't stay on his toes.  

            As the two sprites secretly staked each other out, their concentration was interrupted by a familiar voice from above the system.

**            Warning.  Incoming game.  Warning.  Incoming game.**


	5. Caught Red Handed

**Chapter Four:**

As Adell and Nick walked through the park, Adell couldn't help feeling that there was a surreal quality to this second.  Here she was, back in her home system, walking and talking with someone who had been her best friend for hours, but there was something different that she couldn't quite put her finger on.  She and Nick had spent about a millisecond catching up and the general tone of their conversation had been the same as always, very familiar and comfortable.  Why then was she feeling discomposed and jittery?

            "So how long do you have off before you start your internship?"  Nick asked, hoping she didn't have to leave Mainframe too soon.  He hadn't realized until now just how much he had missed her company.  

            "I've got a whole minute off till I have to go back," she replied, "not sure what I'm going to do with all that time, though."

            "At least you get some time off to relax a bit," he answered, relieved that she would be around for a while, "I've only got a few seconds till I graduate, then it's back here to start working with the tech boys in the P.O."  He then added a bit timidly, "You could come to my graduation if you want."

            "You know I will." She replied with a smile as she put her arm around his waist.  "I'll be the one waving the 'Yay Nick' pennant."  Both of them laughed before she continued.  "Plus, if you're here in Mainframe, it'll give me someone to pester beside my dad."

            "Yeah," he managed to say over his laughter, "maybe you can drop in at the P.O. and say hi once in a while too," his tone became slightly disheartened, "before you leave, that is."

            "I just might do that." She replied with a smile before they were interrupted by the system voice.

            **Warning.  Incoming Game.  Warning.  Incoming Game.**

***

            Bob looked up as the system sky turned to an ominous purple as the familiar voice announced the game.  He scanned in all directions for the landing coordinates and finally pinpointed them in Ghetty Prime, all the way across the system.  It was going to take a lot of speed to get there in time and right now all he had was the old 262.  It was running quite well, but as for speed, it left much to be desired.  "Glitch, get me Matrix." He said as he got an idea.

            A vid-window opened in front of Matrix and Enzo while they were on their way to the bikes.  "Matrix," Bob said from the other side, "you got a bike to spare?  All I have here is the 262, and that's not going to make it in time."

            "Not a problem, Bob."  He answered.  "Meet us at the parking lot and you can take mine.  Andi's is a little tricky to handle at times so I'll take hers."

            "Thanks Matrix, see you there."  Bob closed the window and raced toward the parking lot on his zip-board.  Normally, if the game were closer, he would have just used the zip-board.  But this game was clear across the entire city and no zip-board would make it in time.

            As he reached the parking lot, he found Matrix and Enzo at their bikes.  He caught up with them as they were starting the engines.  "You guys are tagging along, I take it?" he said as he jumped on Matrix's bike and started it up.

            "Wouldn't miss it." Enzo said with a smile as they lifted off and headed toward the game.  "Let's go."

***

            Ray had kept a close watch on Matrix and Enzo as they made their way to the parking lot.  He knew that if the command he placed was going to work, racing off to a game was more than likely a good way to set it off.  He kept his distance, remaining close enough to just see them clearly.  As he approached the parking lot once again, he saw Bob taking off on Matrix's bike.  

            "Oh no." Ray whispered under his breath.  This was not good.  If the unformat command was set off while Bob was on it, there was no telling what would happen, especially with him being the Prime Guardian.  If he found out about the illegal command, there would be Dell to pay.  Not just for him, but also for his son for smuggling them into the system.  

            He had to make sure that Bob didn't go into that game cube.  The energy surge would set it off for sure, and a game was not a good place for that to happen.  As quickly as he could, he flew after them.  Keeping up with them, however, was proving to be more difficult than he thought.  He had almost forgotten about AndrAIa making some modifications to the bikes.  But with sheer determination, he gave the baud everything it had to catch up to them.

***

            "Looks like some things never change."  Adell commented as she and Nick watched the game cube on its descent through the sky.  

            "You can say that again." Nick replied as he pointed to the system's defenders, rushing to get to the cube in time.  

            Adell couldn't help but smile as they flew overhead.  She still felt a great deal of pride in her father and uncles' dedication to Mainframe and keeping its citizens safe from harm.  She giggled slightly, however, at the sight of her father on her mother's sea-foam green bike. 

            "What's so funny?" Nick asked, slightly confused by her reaction.

            "Dad just looks a little silly on Mom's bike, is all." She replied as she pointed toward the speeding Guardians.

            Nick suddenly realized what it was she had been pointing out, and a feeling of dread began to course over him.  If Matrix was riding AndrAIa's bike, where was his?  His dad had to have placed that command by now.  Had it already happened?  

            "Uncle Bob looks sort of small on Dad's bike too." She giggled once again.

            "Oh boy!" Nick thought out loud as another terrible thought entered his mind.  If Bob happened to set off that command, his entire career in Mainframe would be over before it even started.  He'd be in serious trouble, and so would his father.  

            He stared at the racing trio briefly, praying to the User that his dad hadn't found a way to install it, before catching sight of another movement in the distance.  He focused his visor on it and saw his dad rapidly surfing after them.  "Oh boy!" He said once again, knowing now that he had installed it and it was just a matter of time before they were caught red-handed by the Prime Guardian.  "We have to stop them!"

            "What?"  Adell was quite confused by his remark.

            "No time to explain now." He said as he grabbed her and set her behind him on his baud.  "We just have to stop Bob from getting in that game."  He lifted the baud off the ground and began to follow them at a heart stopping pace.

            Adell had no idea what to make of the situation.  All she knew was that Nick was very determined to catch up to the trio.  "What do you mean we have to stop him?  He has to go to the game to defeat the User."

            "If he reaches that game," he was now shouting, "he may not be around to defeat the User!"

            "What in the Net are you talking about?"  She had never seen him this agitated before and it was starting to frighten her.

            "Just trust me on this Adell, we have to stop him before he gets in that game.  Now hang on."  Nick leaned forward and the baud launched forward even faster, causing Adell to grip tight to Nick's waist.  They raced behind them as fast as they could and slowly began to close the sky between them.  As they got closer, Nick began to shout Bob's name, praying to the User that he would hear him.  He urged his baud on, desperately trying to gain more speed.  The game was just a short distance from them now and time was running out.  In a last ditch effort, Nick cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled as loud as he was able.  "Bob!"

***

            AndrAIa and Mouse had been browsing the flea markets for quite a while when they realized it was time to meet Dot for lunch at a nearby café concession.  After the three sat down, Mouse decided to make mention that she thought Ray and Nick might be up to something.  

            "And then they went out in the garage, supposedly to look at some project that Ray's been working on." Mouse rolled her eyes as she continued.  "The old man never goes in the garage any more unless he has to."

            That does sound weird." AndrAIa said as she picked up her energy shake and took a sip.  "Do you think we should have someone keep an eye on them?"

            "I don't know," Mouse sighed.  "I don't have any substantial proof to go on to warrant having them watched."

            "Well it's not going to hurt to just have someone on standby, just in case." Dot added.  "You know how things can turn out when Ray or Matrix is up to something."

            "Ahh," AndrAIa said as she winced a bit and put her hands on her head.

            "Is something wrong Andi?"  Dot asked, concerned about the dropping game.  She knew that AndrAIa had a sort of intuition about them and could often tell when something had gone wrong.

            "Something's not right." She answered.

            "Is it the game?" Mouse asked.

            "Not the game, something else." She answered.  She seemed to be listening to something in the distance.  "Someone is yelling for Bob."

            "Can you tell who it is?"  Dot asked.

            "No, but I have a bad feeling about this."  She continued as she listened more closely.  "I think we should go check it out."

            "I'm with you, Sugah."  Mouse added, also getting the feeling that something was wrong.

            "Me too," Dot said as she began to get up from the table.  "After what Mouse said about this morning, anything could happen."

            The three women hopped on their zip-boards and headed toward the game, the sense of urgency growing as they got closer to the descending cube.  None of them had any idea what was happening at the edge of G-Prime, but whatever it was, it was bad.

***

            "Bob!"

            The Prime Guardian could have sworn he heard someone calling his name.  He glanced around and when he saw Nick and Adell racing toward him, he hit the brakes hard to slow the bike down.  The bike lurched forward and came to a standstill with a jolt.  

            "No!"  Nick yelled as he saw a small flash coming from the side of the bike.  It was too late.  The bike began a slow descent over the sector and began to spit and sputter as if it were running out of energy.  

            Bob cranked on the gas to try to get it to climb once again, but it was futile.  The bike was on its way down, gaining speed as it dropped.  He aimed for a nearby rooftop and hit the brakes as hard as he could.  The bike skidded and was coming dangerously close to the edge of the building without slowing enough to stop it.  It was just about to go off the edge when Bob shouted, "Glitch. Grapple!"  Glitch responded and sent a three-pronged hook and line to the other side of the rooftop, effectively stopping the bike before it plummeted off the top of the building.

            Bob took a brief nano to catch his breath as Nick and Adell landed on the roof behind him.  He still hadn't quite figured out what had just happened.

            "Bob, are you alright?"  Nick said as they ran toward him.

            "Yeah," he replied, still quite shaken and confused, "what in the Net just happened?"  He lifted himself from the bike, and his eyes widened when the bike began to melt away before his eyes.  "Whoa, that's not normal.  What the Dell is going on?"

            Nick hung his head slightly as Adell and Bob watched the bike, horrified, knowing that this would not go over well with Matrix.  They all seemed to be thinking the same thing since they all looked up to Matrix, still heading to the game.  He apparently hadn't seen what had happened, and Bob was relieved that at least someone was going to be in that game.  He and Enzo could handle things on their own if things got ugly in there.

            "You want to tell me what just happened?"  Bob looked over to Nick and Adell for answers.

            "I'd like to know that myself." Adell said as she turned to face Nick.  She didn't look too happy with him at the nano and Nick cringed slightly.

            "It's a long story, Bob." Nick said as he looked at the roof below his feet.

            "Well, since it doesn't look like I'm getting into that game," Bob's face became stern, "I think we have some time.  Why don't you fill me in and explain this."

***

            Ray could still see Matrix and Enzo, but he had lost sight of Bob.  This was not good.  Matrix, he knew could handle the bike on a downward spiral, but Bob was a different story.  He began looking around for any sign of the Prime Guardian as he neared the dropping cube.  He tried not to panic, knowing that Bob could be very resourceful and could take care of himself.  But he would never be able to forgive himself if something happened to him.  

            As he scanned G-Prime for him, he finally noticed that Bob was on a rooftop behind him, safe and standing with Nick and Adell.  The bike, however, was a mess. Spammit, if only that were Matrix down there, he thought.  The look on his face would be priceless.  He focused his goggles on Bob's face and noticed that he wasn't too happy about what had happened.  He turned the baud around and started to head for the rooftop to get Nick off the hook, when something made him look up, causing him to curse under his breath.

            Ray had been concentrating so hard on finding Bob that he didn't notice he was right in the game cube's path.  By the time he realized it, it was too late.  A wave of purple energy engulfed him. After the wave passed, he was in a world that he didn't recognize.  

"Cursors!" 

***

            Mouse, AndrAIa and Dot finally spotted Bob on a rooftop near the game cube.  They all noticed right away that the Prime Guardian didn't look too happy, but he seemed to be processing fine.  They all gave a silent thanks to the User before landing on top of the building.  Nick looked a little worried and Adell looked downright angry.  As they came closer, they all saw the melted heap in front of Bob.

            "What in the Net happened here?"  Dot asked as she looked over the mess. "Bob, are you alright?" 

            "I'm fine," he said as she hugged him tightly and looked him over, "there's no need to worry."

            "Oh no," Mouse said as she took a closer look, "is that Matrix's bike?"

            "You've got to be kidding me." AndrAIa said as she saw the **(V) **symbol slightly distorted in the melted mess.  "He is going to be so mad when he sees this."

            "As it turns out, that was the point." Adell huffed and glared at Nick.

            Mouse looked over to her son, who had 'Guilty' written all over him.  "Does this have anything to do with a certain project that your father has been supposedly working on?"  Nick gave her a sheepish look and Mouse sighed.  "I knew you two were up to something."

            "Look," Dot said as she shook her head, "we can sort all this out at the Principal Office.  We've got a game to keep an eye on."

            "I'm sure the game will be fine Dot," Bob interrupted, "Matrix and Enzo are in there.  They'll be alright."

            "That's not what I'm concerned about," she said as she got back on her zip board, "Ray's in there with them, and there's no telling what can happen with those two in a game together."

            Bob almost turned white.  It was bad enough when they were together in the city, but in a game?  If those two got under each other's skin enough, it could put the whole system in danger.  He prayed to the User that they would use their heads and not do anything that might harm Mainframe, but after looking at the melted mess in front of him once more, there was only one thing he could say.

            "This is bad.  This is very bad."

***

            "Where's Bob?"  Matrix said as he looked over their surroundings.  

            "I don't know." Enzo answered.  "He was right behind us last I knew.  Do you think he might be on a different level?"

            "Doesn't seem likely since we were all together."  Matrix looked around once more.  "I wish he was here though, we could really use some game stats."

            Enzo looked around and tried to figure out what the objective was.  The room they were in seemed very large and the ceilings were very high.  The wide wooden lanes reminded him of the jet-bowling alley in Sector 1101 in Baudway.  The only thing was, these were huge; at least ten times the size of a normal lane.  There were several boxes sitting in random locations all over the room, each having a different type of decorative pattern on it.  "Well, what do you say we reboot and see what the game gives us?"

            "Let's do it."  Matrix replied.

            "Sure thing, Mate."

            Matrix and Enzo turned around quickly to see Ray standing there on his baud.  "What are you doing in here?"  Matrix snarled at the surfer.  "And where's Bob?"

            "He had a bit of problem on the way to the game."  Ray answered with a grin, knowing it was tearing the renegade up that he was in there.  "By the way, what was Bob doing on your bike?"

            "My bike?"  Matrix was starting to put two and two together now.  "What did you do to my bike?"

            "There's no time to discuss this now!"  Enzo said as several small vehicles appeared in the room in different locations.  "We've got a game to win."

            Matrix continued to glare at the surfer for a nano, then reached for his icon and tapped it twice.  "Reboot."  

            "Reboot."  Enzo followed suit.

            "Reboot."  Ray said as he clicked his icon.  Matrix was still glaring at him, but it was hard to take him seriously in his rebooted form.  He was still green, but very short and had an oddly oblong head with a little antennae coming from the top.  His stubby little body was the real kicker though, and Ray couldn't help but laugh at the sight of him.  

            "What are you laughing at?"  Matrix said as he pointed to Ray.  "You're just as bad."  The surfer looked down to see his rebooted form and almost laughed at himself.  He was chubby and pink.  He looked at his reflection in the little toy car that had rebooted with him and saw a large snout like nose and a cork in his belly.  

            "Haha," Enzo said as he pointed at the both of them, "you two look ridiculous."  He continued to laugh as they looked at him.  He was definitely some sort of doll, taller than them, and was wearing a cowboy hat, fringed shirt and pants, and cowboy boots.  He also had a small vehicle that resembled a toy.

            "Laugh later, Bro." Matrix said as he got in his little vehicle.  "Like you said, we got a game to win."

            When all three were in their vehicles, the User showed up.  Ray noted that it looked like it couldn't make up its mind if it was a robot or a man.  The User also came with a vehicle and was sitting at the opposite corner of the room. 

            "To infinity, and beyond!"  The User called out and the vehicles started to move.  All three of them watched the game sprites and the User for a nano as they drove over the boxes and picked various items to hurl at the others.

            "Go for the boxes!"  Matrix yelled as he drove over a yellow and black polka dotted box and picked up an eight ball.  When he got in range of the User, he sent the eight ball flying at him, but at the last nano, the User turned and the ball hit the wall and shattered.  "Spammit!"  He called out.

            Several of the game sprites were doing the same thing, but it became apparent that they didn't differentiate between the User and themselves when one of them hurled a squeaky rubber sheep at another and knocked it out of the game.

            "Watch out for the game sprites!"  Ray yelled as he drove over a box and picked up a small rocket and aimed for one of them.  "They don't care if you're the User or not."

            "You two keep the game sprites occupied while I go for the User."  Enzo said as he got right up behind the User with a spinning top.  He released it, but instead of going straight after the User, it spun off to the side, bounced off one of the gutters, and came back to hit him.  His vehicle turned black and immediately stopped running.  "Cursors!" He shouted as he spun and was knocked out of the game. 

            "Spammit!" Matrix shouted once again.  "Enzo's out."  He looked over to Ray with a menacing glint in his eye.  "Just you and me, Pal."

            Ray returned the icy look.  "Let's do this."

            The two men raced off in search of suitable boxes with weapons to pick up while the User took out another game sprite with a rubber ball.  Matrix drove over a red box with a yellow lightening bolt on it, picking up a static charge on his vehicle's antennae.  Ray drove over a blue box with red stripes and picked up a spinning top.  Both of them took off after the User from different sides of the room, determined to be the first to knock the User out.  

            As the User drove down an alley, Matrix came over a gutter rail from one side while Ray came in from the other.  Before they could slow down or turn their vehicles, they slammed into each other, knocking both of their weapons off in different directions.

            "Spammit Surfer, I just about had him."  Matrix growled.

            "What are you yelling at me for?  I was just about to let the top get him when you came barreling over the rail."  Ray glared as he shouted.  "I could have had him."

            "Leave the User to me!" Matrix snapped.  "Just stay out of my way and let me get this game over with."

            The User was barreling up another alley while the two sprites argued.  He loaded his vehicle with a static charge and took out yet another game sprite.  

            "We'll just see who gets the User." Ray sneered and took off down the alley, looking for more ammo.

            "Yeah," Matrix sneered and took off after Ray, "it's going to be me!"  He caught up with the surfer and drove side by side with him for a nano before turning his wheel and catching him in the side.  Ray's vehicle wavered for a nano before he got control back and swerved directly into Matrix, who was still racing down the alley.  Matrix wasn't expecting the hit and spun around over one of the rails.

            "Haha," Ray called out as he drove over a blue box with red dots and picked up a rocket, "you're getting too old for this spam.  Just leave it to someone who can get the job done."  He came around on a narrow stretch of carpet and caught sight of the User at the other end going around a corner.  He turned his wheel and drove over another rail, hoping to catch the User on the other side, when Matrix came up from the side and knocked him with an eight ball.  Ray's rocket disappeared, but his vehicle was still running.

            "Spammit, Matrix!  I just about had him."

            "No," Matrix shouted, "I just about had him and you got in the way!"

            "Uh… guys." Enzo's voice rang out as he watched the User take down another of the game sprites with a yo-yo.  "You think you can argue about this later and get the User?"

            "I'm trying," Matrix's stout green form shouted, "but someone keeps getting in the way."

            "Well, if you'd watch what was going on instead of being a hard headed psychopath," Ray snorted at Matrix, "you'd be able to see that I damn near had the User until you came barreling through."

            Enzo watched the User take out what appeared to be the last of the game sprites.  "Uh… guys, you really need to get the User."

            "Just stay out of my way, before you end up getting your old ASCII in trouble."  Matrix sneered at the surfer.

            "My old ASCII can still keep up with any User so I suggest you stay out of my way, Mate."

            "Guys?"  Enzo shouted out one more time.  "The User is coming right at you!"

            The two men quickly looked around to see the User right at the end of the alley they were in, coming at them with a rocket poised on the front of his vehicle.  Matrix could only find one thing to say as the User kept coming.  "This is not good."

            "Not good at all, Mate."


End file.
